EssenceMediacom nets Sofology digital in DFS bonus

sofologySofology, the home furnishings brand whose ads are fronted by Helena Bonham Carter, has handed its digital brief to WPP media agency EssenceMediacom, in a move which consolidates the full media scope of parent group DFS.

EssenceMediacom already holds the linear TV and broadcast VOD brief and has now expanded that to include Sofology’s £4m spend on digital channels, including search, increasing its full spend with the brand to £10m across all channels.

Using first party data and a full-funnel strategy, EssenceMediacom will be working to drive revenue growth for the brand across all channels. The7stars was the previous incumbent on the digital brief.

The win reflects EssenceMediacom’s strategic focus, with 80% of EssenceMediacom’s wins in the past 18 months being digital accounts.

The agency claims its digital and data practices have helped galvanise this effort: EssenceMediacom’s eCommerce Centre of Excellence launched in 2021 and grew significantly across 2022, while the launch of its Data Practice the same year has since enabled an ever increasing number of media activations to be powered by clients’ first-party data.

This expansion also follows a number of wins and contract renewals for the agency since its launch earlier this year, including Flutter Entertainment and Sky Bet, DFS, Cancer Research UK, eBay and Sony PlayStation. The scope of work spans a range of disciplines from digital to addressable creative to social, planning and buying.

The agency’s Creative Futures practice grew significantly in 2022, guided by talent including the recently promoted Lindsey Jordan, managing partner of creative strategy and executive creative director Tom Curtis.

The practice is responsible for several of the agency’s multi-award winning campaigns, including the eBay ‘Pre-Loved’ activity, and TUI’s creation of a branded Amazon Prime show, World Cook.

Sofology brand director Jan Duckworth said: “We are excited to work with EssenceMediacom and capitalise our impact across all channels with the budget we have, as the media playbook becomes ever increasingly interdependent, very quickly! By having the opportunity to tap into its massive insights, media expertise and technology, we aim to flawlessly punch even higher above our weight.”

EssenceMediacom UK chief executive Kate Rowlinson added: “Expanding our long standing partnership with DFS Group and scope of work with Sofology with a digital brief speaks to the significant innovation and growth across several of our digital disciplines.

“With key client partners like Sofology, which is an extremely exciting home brand in the UK, recognising the power of our insight capabilities, creative talent and technology, I’m excited to see the momentum we are building during this new phase of the business.”

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